SE542755C2

SE542755C2 - Methods and systems for accurate temperature readings of animals of interest

Info

Publication number: SE542755C2
Application number: SE1851399A
Authority: SE
Inventors: Graham Mccarthy
Original assignee: Bmp Innovation Ab
Priority date: 2018-11-09
Filing date: 2018-11-09
Publication date: 2020-07-07
Also published as: SE1851399A1; CA3118951A1; EP3876831A1; WO2020096515A1

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for performing and/or ensuring accurate temperature readings of an animal of interest (200). The method comprises detecting (S100) an animal of interest (200) and performing (S110) an area temperature reading (210) of the animal of interest (200). The method further comprises obtaining (S120) an image (220) of the animal of interest (200) from the same point in time as the temperature reading (210) and based on the image (220) and the temperature reading (210), determining (S130) if the area temperature reading (210) is accurate.

Description

METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ACCURATE TEMPERATURE READINGS OF ANIMALS OF INTEREST Technical field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to methods, systems and devices for ensuring accurate temperature readings for animals.

Background

[0002] Measuring the temperature of animals can be useful for many different purposes. The body temperature of an animal can be indicative of states in the animals, such as sickness, injury, pregnancy, parturition, estrus, and similar states.

[0003] When performing temperature readings of animals, it can be difficult to locate a single spot that accurately represents their body temperature. Although there are some spots that are more representative than others, it is rare to find a spot which is as accurate as one would like it to be.

[0004] By measuring temperature over an area or a volume instead of in a single spot, it becomes easier to get a temperature reading that more accurately reflects the body temperature of an animal. However, measuring temperature over an area or a volume rather than a single spot, entails other issues, and is not commonly used today.

[0005] Consequently, there exists a need for improvement when it comes to finding solutions for ensuring accurate temperature readings of animals.

Summary

[0006] It is an object of the invention to address at least some of the problems and issues outlined above. An object of embodiments of the invention is to provide systems and methods which are capable of performing accurate temperature readings of animals, and which are capable of ensuring that the temperature readings are in fact accurate. It is further an object to provide a system which is resource efficient and relatively inexpensive.

[0007] According to one aspect, there is provided a method for performing and/or ensuring accurate temperature readings of an animal of interest. The method comprises detecting an animal of interest and performing an area temperature reading of the animal of interest. The method further comprises obtaining an image of the animal of interest from the same point in time as the temperature reading, and based on the image and the temperature reading, determining if the area temperature reading is accurate.

[0008] According to another aspect, a system for performing and/or ensuring accurate temperature readings of an animal of interest is provided. The system comprises an image obtaining device and an area temperature reading device. The system comprises processing circuitry and a memory, and is operative for detecting an animal of interest and performing an area temperature reading of the animal of interest. The system is further operative for obtaining an image of the animal of interest from the same point in time as the temperature reading, and based on the image and the temperature reading, determining if the area temperature reading is accurate.

[0009] According to other aspects, computer programs and carriers are also provided, the details of which will be described in the claims and the detailed description.

[00010] Further possible features and benefits of this solution will become apparent from the detailed description below.

Brief description of drawings

[00011] The solution will now be described in more detail by means of exemplary embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[00012] Fig. 1 shows an example of a system which may be used to perform temperature readings according to the present disclosure.

[00013] Fig. 2 shows an example of an accurate area temperature reading.

[00014] Fig. 3 shows an example of an inaccurate area temperature reading.

[00015] Fig. 4 schematically shows steps of a method according to an embodiment.

[00016] Fig. 5 shows a block schematic of a system according to the present disclosure.

Detailed description

[00017] Briefly described, the present disclosure relates to methods and systems for performing and/or ensuring accurate temperature readings of animals. The method comprises detecting an animal of interest, such as a cattle animal or a pig. The animal is detected by a device which can capture and/or otherwise obtain an image of the animal of interest, such as a camera. The method further comprises performing an area temperature reading of the animal in question. The area temperature reading is performed on an area, or on a volume, of the animal. The area temperature reading is generally performed at a distance from the animal, in a non-invasive way. The method further comprises obtaining an image of the animal of interest from the same point in time as the temperature reading was performed, and based on the obtained image and the performed temperature reading, determining if the temperature reading is correct. Determining that the temperature reading is correct may comprise ensuring that all of the area measured in the area temperature reading is an area of the animal, and not an area comprising something else, such as air or similar.

[00018] An insight relevant to the present disclosure is that area temperature readings are superior to spot temperature readings. When performing area temperature readings, the quality of the reading typically increases as the area of the temperature reading increases, which entails that it is desirable to be able to measure as large of an area as possible. Flowever, if the area chosen is larger than the animal, this entails that parts of the area temperature reading will include temperature readings of parts that do not belong to the animal, such as the temperature of the air surrounding the animal. The accuracy of the temperature reading naturally decreases when a part of the area temperature reading not comprising the animal of interest increases.

[00019] This results in a problem of how to ensure accurate temperature readings while still being able to perform readings on as large of an area as possible. The present disclosure provides a solution to this by combining the functionality of a camera with the functionality of a device for performing area temperature readings, wherein the readings are performed from a distance, such that the camera is used to ensure that the area measured by the area temperature reading actually contains the animal of interest.

[00020] Looking now at Fig. 1, a system which may be used to perform methods according to the present disclosure is shown. The system comprises a device for performing area temperature readings 110, preferably from a distance in a noninvasive way. For example, a thermopile may be used as the area temperature reading device 110. The system further comprises a camera 120, the camera being adapted to obtain and/or capture images of an animal of interest 100. The temperature reading device 110 may be stationary such that it always measures a predetermined area/volume, or it may be movable such that it can change the position and/or size of the area/volume which it measures. The area/volume which is covered by the temperature reading device 110 is denoted by the dotted lines in Fig .1 extending from the temperature reading device 110. The camera 120 has a field of view, denoted by the dotted lines in Fig. 1 extending from the camera 120. An important aspect of the invention is that the field-of-view of the camera 120 needs to cover at least the area in which the temperature reading device 110 measures the temperature, and preferably an area larger than the area covered by the temperature reading device 110.

[00021] Looking now at Figs. 2 and 3, examples are shown of an accurate area temperature reading in Fig. 2, and an inaccurate area temperature reading in Fig.3.

[00022] In Fig. 2 an example is shown comprising an animal of interest 200, an area 210 covered by the temperature reading device, and an area 220 covered by the camera. The area 220 covered by the camera may also be seen as an image taken with or obtained by the camera. If a temperature reading is to be considered accurate and/or successful, the area 210 covered by the temperature reading device needs to be completely covered by the animal 200, which is the case in the example shown in Fig. 2. As will be understood, the area 210 is merely an example, the actual size, shape and position of the area 210 covered by the temperature reading device may differ depending on factors such as for example which type of animal the animal of interest is, the size of the animal of interest and the accuracy of the temperature reading device. The area of an animal of interest which is suitable for obtaining an area temperature reading which is representative of a body temperature of the animal, differs depending on the animal. As an example, for pigs an accurate temperature reading can be obtained from the back area, similar to the area 210 shown in Fig. 2 in case the animal of interest 200 is a pig. Flowever, for other animals such as cows, the back area is usually not representative of the body temperature, but areas such as the anal or vaginal region, the ears or the tear ducts of the cow, are areas in which the temperature is representative of a body temperature. In some embodiments, the method may comprise determining which part of the animal is suitable to perform the temperature reading one, wherein this determining may be based on the type of animal.

[00023] Looking now at Fig. 3, an example of an inaccurate temperature reading is shown. The reason for it being inaccurate, is that the area 310 covered by the temperature reading device is not entirely covered by the animal 300, which results in some parts 330, 340 of the area containing something that is not the animal of interest 300, such as air. If this is the case, the accuracy of the temperature reading is decreased, due to the fact that parts 330, 340 of the area measured 310 has a temperature which is not representative of the animal.

[00024] The difference between Figs. 2 and 3 can be seen as showing a scenario in case the temperature reading device is stationary, which it is in some implementations. Temperature readings are suitable to be performed in places where the animals regularly pass, and having a system for performing temperature readings mounted stationary requires a less sophisticated and thus also cheaper system than having a system adapted to automatically readjust the size and/or position of the area in which the temperature reading is performed. However, methods and systems according to the present disclosure can be used to improve the accuracy even for systems in which the temperature reading device is movable and can change the position and/or size of the area in which the temperature reading is being performed.

[00025] Fig. 4, in conjunction with Figs. 1 and 2, shows an embodiment of a method according to the present disclosure. The method comprises detecting S100 an animal of interest 200. The animal of interest 200 may be detected by the camera 120 or by the temperature reading device 110. The method further comprises performing S110 an area temperature reading 200 of the animal of interest 200. The method further comprises obtaining S120 an image 220 of the animal of interest 200, from the same point in time as when the temperature reading was performed. The method then comprises determining S130, based on the obtained image 220 and the temperature reading, if the temperature reading is accurate.

[00026] As mentioned, the step of detecting S100 an animal of interest may be performed by the camera 120 or by the temperature reading device 110. In some embodiments, detecting S100 an animal of interest 200 may also be performed by another device, such as e.g. a sensor suitable for detecting the presence of an animal. In some embodiments, especially in embodiments wherein the detecting S100 is performed by the temperature reading device, the steps of detecting S100 an animal of interest and performing S110 an area temperature reading of the animal of interest 200, may be performed as one step. For example, the temperature reading device 110 may constantly be reading the temperature of an area, but the subsequent steps of the method are not performed until it is also detected that there is an animal present within the area 210 for which the temperature reading is being performed.

[00027] The step of obtaining S120 an image of the animal of interest may also, in some embodiments, entail that the camera 120, which may be a video camera, is constantly recording images of a predetermined area 210, but only images from the same point of time as a temperature reading are used. Determining that an image is taken at the same time as a temperature reading is performed may entail comparing timestamp information from the temperature reading with timestamp information from the obtained image 220. In some implementations, the temperature measuring device 110 and the camera 120 may be adapted such that a temperature reading of the device 110 automatically triggers that the camera obtains an image 220 at the same time.

[00028] The step of determining S130, based on the obtained image 220 and the temperature reading, if the temperature reading is accurate may in one embodiment comprise analyzing the image 220 and the area 210 of the temperature reading, and determining that the temperature reading is accurate if all of the area 210 comprises the animal of interest 200. In some embodiments, the temperature reading may be determined as accurate as long as a large enough part of the image comprises the animal, for example as long as 90% of the image is covered by the animal.

[00029] Fig. 5, in conjunction with Figs. 1 and 2, shows a system 600 adapted to perform and/or ensure accurate temperature readings of animals. The system comprises an image obtaining device 120, such as a camera, and an area temperature reading device 110. The image obtaining device 120 and the area temperature reading device may in some embodiments be different devices, and in some embodiments they may be integrated into the same device. The system 600 comprises processing circuitry 603 and a memory 604. In some embodiments, each of the image obtaining device 120 and the temperature reading device 110 comprises processing circuitry and a memory, and in some embodiments, the system comprises processing circuitry and a memory for both devices. The processing circuitry 603 may comprise one or more programmable processor, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. The memory contains instructions executable by said processing circuitry, whereby the system 600 is operative for detecting an animal of interest, performing an area temperature reading of the animal of interest (200), obtaining an image (220) of the animal of interest (200) from the same point in time as the area temperature reading and based on the image (220) and the area temperature reading, determining if the area temperature reading is accurate. The detecting of an animal of interest may be performed by either the image obtaining device 120 or the temperature reading device 110. The area temperature reading is performed by the area temperature reading device 110. The image is obtained by the image obtaining device 120. The determining if the area temperature reading is accurate may be performed by the image obtaining device 120, by the area temperature reading device 110, or by another device comprising processing circuitry and a memory, such as a computer.

[00030] The system 600 that performs the method may be a group of network nodes, wherein functionality for performing the method are spread out over different physical, or virtual, nodes of the network. In other words, the system for performing and/or ensuring accurate temperature readings may be a cloudsolution, i.e. the system may be deployed as cloud computing resources that may be distributed in the network.

[00031] According to an embodiment, performing the temperature reading of the animal of interest comprises measuring the temperature of a predetermined area when the animal of interest is within the predetermined area.

[00032] According to an embodiment, determining if the area temperature reading is accurate comprises determining if any part of the predetermined area which the area temperature reading was performed on, was not occupied by the animal of interest at the time of the area temperature reading.

[00033] According to an embodiment, the system 600 is further operative for outputting a signal to indicate whether the area temperature reading was accurate or not. The signal may be a for example a visual signal, such as a light, or an audible signal comprising sound.

[00034] According to other embodiments, the system 600 may further comprise a communication unit 602, which may be considered to comprise conventional means for communicating with other entities, such as computers connected to the system. The instructions executable by said processing circuitry 603 may be arranged as a computer program 605 stored e.g. in the memory 604. The processing circuitry 603 and the memory 604 may be arranged in a subarrangement 601. The sub-arrangement 601 may be a micro-processor and adequate software and storage therefore, a Programmable Logic Device, PLD, or other electronic component(s)/processing circuit(s) configured to perform the methods mentioned above.

[00035] The computer program 605 may comprise computer readable code means, which when run in a system 600 causes the system 600 to perform the steps described in any of the described embodiments of the system 600. The computer program 605 may be carried by a computer program product connectable to the processing circuitry 603. The computer program product may be the memory 604. The memory 604 may be realized as for example a RAM (Random-access memory), ROM (Read-Only Memory) or an EEPROM (Electrical Erasable Programmable ROM). Further, the computer program may be carried by a separate computer-readable medium, such as a CD, DVD or flash memory, from which the program could be downloaded into the memory 604. Alternatively, the computer program may be stored on a server or any other entity to which the system has access via the communication unit 602. The computer program may then be downloaded from the server into the memory 604.

[00036] Although the description above contains a plurality of specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the concept described herein but as merely providing illustrations of some exemplifying embodiments of the described concept. It will be appreciated that the scope of the presently described concept fully encompasses other embodiments which may become obvious to those skilled in the art, and that the scope of the presently described concept is accordingly not to be limited. Reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one" unless explicitly so stated, but rather "one or more." All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the abovedescribed embodiments that are known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed hereby. Moreover, it is not necessary for an apparatus or method to address each and every problem sought to be solved by the presently described concept, for it to be encompassed hereby. In the exemplary figures, a broken line generally signifies that the feature within the broken line is optional.

Claims

1. A method for ensuring accurate temperature readings of an animal of interest (200), comprising: detecting (S100) an animal of interest (200); performing (S110) an area temperature reading of the animal of interest (200); obtaining (S120) an image (220) of the animal of interest (200) from the same point in time as the area temperature reading; based on the image (220) and the area temperature reading, determining (S130) if the area temperature reading is accurate, characterized in that performing the area temperature reading of the animal of interest comprises measuring the temperature of a predetermined area (210) when the animal of interest is within the predetermined area (210).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining if the area temperature reading is accurate comprises determining if any part of the predetermined area (210) which the area temperature reading was performed on, was not occupied by the animal of interest (200) at the time of the area temperature reading.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: outputting a signal to indicate whether the area temperature reading was accurate or not.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1-3, further comprising determining an accuracy value for the area temperature reading.

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising adjusting the area temperature reading device (110) to change the position, shape and/or size of the predetermined area (210) in which the area temperature reading is being performed.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the position, shape and/or size of the predetermined area (210) in which the area temperature reading is being performed is selected based on the type and/or size of the animal of interest (200).

7. A system for ensuring accurate temperature readings of an animal of interest (200), comprising: an area temperature reading device (110); an image obtaining device (120); processing circuitry (603); and a memory (604), said memory (604) containing instructions executable by said processing circuitry (603), whereby said system is operative for: detecting an animal of interest (200); performing an area temperature reading of the animal of interest (200); obtaining an image (220) of the animal of interest (200) from the same point in time as the area temperature reading; based on the image (220) and the area temperature reading, determining if the area temperature reading is accurate. characterized in that performing the area temperature reading of the animal of interest (200) comprises measuring the temperature of a predetermined area (210) when the animal of interest (200) is within the predetermined area (210).

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein determining if the area temperature reading is accurate comprises determining if any part of the predetermined area (210) which the area temperature reading was performed on, was not occupied by the animal of interest (200) at the time of the area temperature reading.

9. The system according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the system is further operative for: outputting a signal to indicate whether the area temperature reading was accurate or not.

10. The system according to any one of claims 7-9, wherein the system is further operative for determining an accuracy value for the area temperature reading.

11. The method according to any one of claims 7-10, wherein the system is further operative for adjusting the area temperature reading device (110) to change the position, shape and/or size of the predetermined area (210) in which the area temperature reading is being performed.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the position, shape and/or size of the predetermined area (210) in which the area temperature reading is being performed is selected based on the type of the animal of interest (200).